Let her go
by CoolMintFire
Summary: Tohru runs away after an explosion from Kyo. But what if his anger is all she will remember about him?
1. Chapter 1

The night wore on as Kyo ran through the forest, searching. "Tohru!" He looked around, frantically. "Tohru, where are you? I'm sorry, Tohru, I shouldn't have yelled!"

His lungs burned and his energy was running low. "Tohru! C'mon! Can you hear me?" His foot hooked around an uprooted tree. He hit the ground, hard, air painfully exiting his lungs. He knew he should rest, but she was out there. Somewhere. The memories flooded back.

"Miss Honda, who was that boy you were walking with?" Yuki set his chopsticks down gracefully and rested his cheek on his hand.

"Um… just a friend, Yuki-kun," Tohru said nervously, picking at a suddenly-interesting string hanging off of her sleeve. Shigure almost missed the barely perceptible blush that flooded her cheeks. But writers pride themselves on not missing a thing.

"Why, Tohru. It seems he is much more than that," Shigure winked at her. "So who is the lucky boy?"

Yuki and Shigure leaned forward, while Kyo was fuming.

"His name is Minoka Ie. Ie-kun. And he's just a friend."

"The way you say that leads me to think otherwise, Miss Honda," Yuki smirked.

"When did you meet?"

"Is he a good person?"

"Where were you walking?"

"Has he taken you on any dates?"

The two guys threw questions at her like gossiping teenage girls.

"Enough!" Kyo slammed his hand on the table, startling everyone around him. He stood up quickly, hiding his eyes with his bangs, and stalked out. But not before throwing his uneaten food into the trash. This was a slap in the face to Tohru, an insult. Tohru tried to recover and smiled weakly. The men were aware of her fake smile. Tohru picked up her food (also uneaten) and threw it into the trash. "Dinner wasn't that great tonight, guys. I'll order takeout for you," she rounded the corner, but not before stopping at the doorway. "Sorry." She whispered.


	2. Tortuous Reveal

Kyo tore his fingers through his hair and began jogging again. "Tohru! Please," he repeated. "You need to come home, it's late." He called desperately. Why had he been so upset? He was aware of the many cuts and bruises he had acquired. He hoped Tohru still cared enough about him to treat them. He felt his energy draining, yet forced himself to go on.

"Good night, Tohru." Shigure said gingerly, trying to cheer her up.

"The same to you," she replied halfheartedly.

"Good night, Miss Honda," Yuki called from his room.

"The same to you, Yuki-kun." She called down the hall. Both doors closed, and Tohru was alone. She wanted to go to Kyo, to apologize. That's all she knew how to do. That, and ruin plans, and lives.

She climbed up to the roof, where Kyo was launching rocks as far as he could throw.

"Kyo…?" She could see he was still angry.

"What, stupid?" He growled and continued throwing rocks.

"I- I just wanted to…"

"I don't care. Just go away, ok? I don't care where you go, just stay away from me!" He looked at her furiously.

"Ok," she said timidly. "Goodbye, Kyo."

As she turned, Kyo noticed tears running down her cheeks. Tohru went down the ladder into the house. He just looked away. She cried all the time. Why should this be any different?

Kyo growled at his own stupidity. He looked around and spotted a pink cardigan torn to shreds, bloody on one sleeve. As he kicked it away, the tag showed a name written in tight cursive. 'Tohru Honda'.

Kyo again saw the stillness of night.

The rock he threw before he saw.

The small figure running barefoot.

The dark foliage looming over her as the woods swallowed her.

Tohru running away.

Away from him.

By his own command.

He shook his head. He couldn't beat himself up, not now. Looking around, he saw a necklace. It was a gold chain, with a diamond flower in the middle. The clasp had been broken.

"Yuki-kun, Kyo-kun, I love it!" Tohru jumped around and marveled the new necklace. She pitched herself into their arms, and with a *poof*, her arms were wrapped around a small mouse and a big cat. "Oh, I'm sorry. I was just so happy, and-"

"Miss Honda, it's fine," Yuki laughed.

"Yeah, nothing to get worked up over." Kyo smiled, which was weird, coming from a cat.

"Hey, I helped!" Shigure was standing in the background. "Don't I get any credit?"

"Yes, of course, Shigure!" Tohru set the boys down and bounced onto her feet, laughing. Shigure opened his arms wide, while Yuki and Kyo muttered "pervert" under their breaths. Shigure was soon a dog, and the three of them collapsed. Soon, after puffs of smoke, and the harsh pushing of Tohru out of the room, they went on celebrating her 16th birthday.

Kyo clutched the necklace. He held it close to his heart, and continued looking. Suddenly, he heard coughing. Wet, nasty coughing. "Tohru?" He came to a clearing, where he saw a small, fragile body. He gingerly walked over to the figure and picked it up. Bruises covered her arms, legs, neck and face. Cuts laced around her ankles and tops of her feet. Nails were jagged and some were ripped. Kyo looked down and noticed his shirt was covered in fresh, dark blood. After inspection, he found her arm looked like ground meat, though mostly intact. She was losing a lot of blood. He tore strips of the cardigan and found the blood that was already on it had dried, and would be useless. He threw it away and tore the hem of his shirt, wrapping as much as he could around the wound. He ran frantically back to the house, holding tight to Tohru. He threw the door open and called into the house. "Yuki, call Hatori. Or a hospital, something! Shigure, get down here!"

Tohru writhed weakly in his arms. Kyo yelled. They weren't moving fast enough. He couldn't handle this himself, he was just a kid, please an adult, please, someone who could handle this.

"Shigure, Shigure… I need help, please..." His voice was ragged and tears were streaming down his face, and Shigure was there, taking her out of his arms, and the blood was flowing… there was so much blood...

Annnd that's chapter 2! Don't forget to leave a review and tap that liiiiiittle button there at the bottom. You see it? Yeah, you see it. I'd love some flames to fuel this CoolMintFire, so go ahead and leave them.


	3. There's nothing but hope

Suddenly, Hatori was there, an ambulance was there, and he was at the hospital. He didn't know when he had gotten there, who had taken him? It didn't matter. The only thing that mattered was HER and the bed she was wheeled away in and the doctor that came out looking too happy for the situation she was in. Kyo almost pounced on the doctor like the cat that he was. "She will be okay," he spoke slowly, not fast enough, "she will be very weak. She will have to be in bed recovering. She cannot exert herself with anything."

Shigure nodded. "Of course, of course." But on the inside, he had collapsed with relief. Seeing a torn apart Tohru in the arms of a bruised, battered, and bloody Kyo was surprising and heartbreaking to him. But after three days the doctor sent her home with two cracked ribs, a stitched arm, a broken ankle, and many, many, scrapes and bumps. But she was alive! And very much in pain. Shigure sighed as he punched the number for takeout. It had been so long since he last called the restaurant he had to look at the menu for the number. How he would miss Tohru's cooking.

Kyo was laying on the roof, shaken and alone. Tohru was sleeping, probably dreaming of a place where he didn't exist. He looked up at the sky, replaying the moment that she had run away. He cursed himself for the fiftieth time that day for making her do that. He had screamed at Yuki that he would protect her, and for what? For him to hurt her four days later.

"Oi, cat." Yuki scurried up the ladder to look out onto the roof, too afraid to venture further.

"What, rat? Come to gloat? Lecture_?_ Nag?" His voice was level, lacking the smoldering anger it usually held.

"She wants you." He didn't say anything else as he stepped carefully down the ladder, sure to use every rung.

"Well, I won't go to see her. Stupid, running away in the middle of the night."

"Really?" His eyes narrowed. "You're really going to reject her again?" Without waiting for an answer, he spun on his heel and stalked inside.

Kyo, stunned, jumped from the roof. He walked into the house and took the stairs slowly, one at a time. As the cat approached the girl's door hesitantly, his mind was reeling. He grabbed the doorknob, and had never realized how cold it was, or how hard it was to turn. He shut his eyes and swung the door open quickly. Her back was toward him, and the air that was usually so light felt thick and heavy.

"Hey, Tohru."

She kept her back towards him. "Hello, Kyo-san."

The honorific usually used to describe an stranger, or one you didn't know. He gave up trying to be discreet and crossed the room, looking her over.

"Damn, it must have hurt. Here Tohru, let's get that bandage changed. I'm sor-" he rolled her over to see her bright eyes glistening with tears, and her face red from crying.

"I'm sorry, Kyo-kun!" She buried her face into his stomach, sobbing into his shirt. Startled into silence, he stood there as she bawled.

'This isn't right,' he thought. 'Why is she apologizing?'

Of course. She wouldn't be angry, or resentful. She's Tohru. She would be apologetic.

She was still saying she was sorry to his shirt, so he put his hand on her head. He wished he could pull her close to her, but doubted he would be able to comfort her as a cat. After she had calmed down, he gripped her shoulders and pulled her away from his shirt. He knocked her softly on the top of her head once.

"You don't need to apologize."

"But, you had to carry me back. And find me. Even though you were angry with me. And I ruined your shirt."

"You're more important than a shirt, idiot. You shouldn't be sorry, I should. I yelled at you like a damn fool, and now..." His words trailed off as he examine her injured arm and ankle.

He began unwrapping the bandage and applied medication on the new one to avoid infection. She smiled up at him gratefully, and for that moment, everything was good.

Yuki sat outside of the door, listening to their camaraderie, scowling. Tohru was still alive, and she had forgiven Kyo. (Well, apologized to Kyo). But all he was thankful for was that she had no memory of her plight. That she hadn't seen him hiding in the trees.

That she didn't remember him pouncing.

Or how her arm had gotten shredded.

Or who had broken the necklace.

And her ribs.

And her ankle.

And almost her neck.

Yes, he was thankful she hadn't kept her memories. This way he could continue getting closer, and maybe one day, Kyo may be dragging home an unrecognizable corpse, not Tohru.

Maybe.

One day.

Do you think I should continue working on this story, or would it seem excessive? Tell me in the reviews. (Your wish is my command, dear readers, but do not go power crazy. For the sake of my sanity, don't.) And remember to keep sending those written works. If you have a poem, or a song, or a link to a video, I'll watch it and hey, I might do some shoutouts to your account.

Remember to leave a review. I need some flames to fuel this CoolMintFire! Thanks for reading!


	4. Trust is Like a Knife

She was running. She remembered the pain that swelled so large in her heart, the worthlessness. The forest flew through her peripherals, forgotten, each leaf someone had worked so carefully on in the construct of her dreams worked it's way through her line of sight in a blur. She didn't know what she was running to, just what she was running from. Kyo's angry face was what she saw through all of the tears. She saw it, the branch she tripped over that sent her off of the ledge. It twisted her ankle, sending a shock of pain through her leg. She saw a glimpse of silver that she dismissed as moonlight, and looked at the ground that was very quickly approaching. She then saw every detail of every leaf she was about to make contact with and then-

Tohru awoke in a flash of bright light. She had sat up in her blind panic, and quickly regretted it. Her ribs had a deep ache that seemed to always be just below the surface that no painkiller could relax away. Something had seemed wrong about that dream, some detail. The moonlight, perhaps. She saw it every night, but it had been late evening when she had run. The moonlight wouldn't have been streaming through the trees. She thought back to the dream, but it slipped away, as dreams do, like sand through a child's fingers. She wrested herself out of the bed with great difficulty. Holding a glass of water in one bandaged hand and a hearty amount of pill capsules in the other, Tohru made her way towards the door, never quite making it there. She stood in the middle of the room, not knowing what to do with herself. She was taking her last pill when Kyo walked in with a plate of rice and a small bowl of miso soup.

"Thought you might be hungry." He tried to smile, but it came out looking like he was baring his teeth.

"Thank you, Kyo-kun. I kind of wanted to eat downstairs today, though. I'm sorry you had to bring it all the way up here!" She grabbed the plate and started towards the door, trying to hide the limp she had and the difficulty breathing. He chuckled under his breath and carefully took the plate from her.

'She's getting better,' Yuki thought. 'She always gets treated well. She's never had any real problems with getting along with people. She's been bullied, but never secluded to the point of insanity. She's just a spoiled, over-apologetic brat.'

Though he did like it when she apologized. Even when it was for something meaningless, it was as if she knew she was a screw-up. Meaningless. He chuckled at that. The actions she believes warrant an apology are about as meaningful as she is.

He finished with the wet rag on the polished, now-slick wood of the stair landing. He retreated, knowing she would be gone soon enough.

Tohru limped ahead of Kyo, approaching the stairs. Just as Yuki walked by, her foot suddenly lost traction with the floor. She lurched forward, and suddenly she was flying face-first towards the staircase. Something warm wrapped around her hand, and the gentle touch soon grew too tight as she was wrenched from the air mid-flight, jerked back to Kyo's chest, then staring at the cat on the floor. "That was close." Kyo glared at the stairs. "You could have gotten re-injured."

She looked up from the floor and looked at Yuki, who seemed as though a scowl was just finished passing over his face. Her eyes traveled to his shirt that was covered in soup and rice and blushed.

"I'm so sorry, Yuki! Your shirt-" she jumped up to him as he backed away.

"There's really no need, Miss Honda. I am perfectly capable of cleaning myself." He retreated to his room, sneering at her in his mind.

"Tohru, do try to be more careful." Shigure looked down at the girl who now had Hatori bandaging her knee.

"I don't understand, I was just sitting in the yard and suddenly the chair was taken out from under me! I'm sorry you had to call Hatori-san. And Hatori-san, I'm sorry you had to come all the way out."

Hatori smiled up at her, his good eye peering through his hair. Ever since he had begun dating his new nurse, he had a brighter mood.

"Tohru, you know it isn't that far. And aren't we past calling each other -san? You've known me three years."

Her eyes widened. "I-I didn't know it bothered you Hatori-san. I mean -chan. Or -kun."

He looked back down, chuckling. "It's fine, Tohru. Don't hurt yourself." He placed the last bandages.

When Shigure called saying Tohru was hurt, he had panicked. He was in the middle of a date with his new girlfriend, and he had made a hurried excuse. He had left her after paying the bill and rushed over with a medical kit. He saw Tohru with a ice pack over a badly scraped knee, but nothing serious. He glared at Shigure but had begun bandaging the bloody knee, holding her hand when the peroxide stung, and now worked on her hands, pulling bits of rock out of her raw palms.

"So the chair just disappeared, sending you over a hill?" Kyo was done with these close calls.

"Tohru, you have to be careful. Someone's not always going to save you from yourself."

"You will, Kyo-kun. You did before." She glanced up at him and winced when a bit of rock hit an open wound.

"Well, what if I'm at school or something? What if one day, you just get up and leave and no one can find you?"

Hatori sent a stern glance in Kyo's direction. "Kyo, that's enough. She can't help when she gets hurt."

"No, Hatori-kun. He's right. I've been careless. I apologize." She stood up, bangs covering the top half of her face. She scraped her nails over her palms, effectively tearing out every bit of sediment, and walked quietly out of the room. Everyone that was in the room watched her go, stunned. That was the closest to an emotional outburst that they had seen from her. Yuki stood in the doorway, then turned so no one could see him grinning like a maniac. He didn't have to tear them apart, they were doing to themselves! He decided something. Maybe _he_ wasn't the one that had to end Tohru. Maybe... Maybe she'd do it herself.

He found Tohru in her room, stunned at herself. She had never really been angry before, not even at herself. She couldn't decide what to feel, so she turned to the closest emotion she could relate it to. She sank slowly into the dark sadness that she hid so often. She went into a deep depression at that moment, trying to recreate the intensity of the one she had felt downstairs. Yuki took his chances.

"That was quite an outburst, Miss Honda. Kyo looked- well, it was a feeling I could not name." He was the only one aware of his intent.

"Forlorn?" She looked up, eyes gleaming with tears.

"Well, no. He wouldn't feel that over one such as yourself."

"One such as myself? Yes, I suppose I am quite worthless." She lowered her head again.

The Yuki of two years ago would have reassured her. But he decided to push his luck further.

"Yes, I suppose so." His movement resembled a serpent as he sat beside her on the bed. "Kyo almost didn't check on you, you know. And when I spoke of not seeing you there, he told me to leave you alone."

These words were true. Kyo told Yuki to leave her alone, because she clearly went out there to be alone. But they were twisted with Yuki's malicious intent into an insult.

"Yes, I've been a burden to him. Perhaps I should just..." She grabbed the bottle of pills and dumped them into her hand.

"Oh no, Miss Honda." He grabbed her wrist, and looked into her eyes, his dark ones hypnotizing her.

"That would result in quite a mess in Shigure's house."

"Oh Yuki-kun, you're right. Thank you."

He smiled, a terrible wolfish grin. Patted her head. She had played right into his trap. She dipped the pills back into the bottle and held it as if she were second guessing.

'I've been such a burden. To everyone.' She reassured herself. 'They can go back to being a family again. They don't need a schoolgirl around.'

She quickly scribbled a note, simply saying 'This is for the best. Yuki-kun has helped me see what I've done wrong. Thank you for your help, and I'm sorry for the trouble I have caused. Goodbye. -Tohru Honda'

She left the room quietly, sweeping past Yuki who stood in the doorway, stunned at how easily she had given in. Then he realized, she had given up long ago. She had just needed to be reminded. He smirked at her weakness and glided over to the desk, efficiently ripping the note into unrecognizable pieces.


	5. A Thousand Silenced Words

She cried as she walked towards the creek. She had found it long ago, only a few yards away from Yuki's garden. With every step she took, hot tears rolled down her face, stinging from the scratches.

'Its for the best.' She thought. 'No one will have to deal with your silliness anymore.' And in that moment, she hated herself. She cradled her broken heart and whispered violent lullabies, telling herself she was worthless, how stupid it was to always dwell on her mother's death. 'When I reincarnate, Mom,' she sent up a prayer, 'I'll do better. I'll be even nicer. I won't disappoint you again.' Of course she was going to reincarnate, not just join her mom in heaven. She still had work to do. She was resolute at the thought of making everything better.

Hatsuharu glanced back over the hill Tohru had just walked over. Had she been crying? He shrugged and headed towards the house.

She had the pills in one hand and the water bottle in the other. Her heart was racing as she took them, one by one. Once the rest of the bottle had been finished off, (there had been about eight pills left) she immediately regretted it. 'What if this wasn't enough?' The thought hit her like a blow to the stomach. 'What if they find me alive and have to take care of me?' She swiveled around, looking for a way to finish herself off, the thought of burdening the men that had helped her so much made her panicky. When all seemed lost, and her vision was starting to fade, she caught a glimpse of the creek. And an idea.

Something tugged at the back of his mind. He turned and headed the way Tohru had. Shigure, who was near the door ready to greet him, began to follow. "Haru, Haru, what's wrong?"

Hatsuharu followed the bare footsteps of the girl and shouted back, "I think Tohru's in trouble." He jerked his head out of habit, sweeping the white hair out of his eyes. This statement made Shigure speed up as he trailed the boy. "Tohru, where are you?" Shigure sounded more serious than he had in a long time. They waited for an answer, and only heard something fall into the creek.

She heard Shigure and had decided to act fast. She was losing consciousness as she stumbled towards the deep creek. She had time to picture Shigure and whoever was with him finding her and being glad she was gone before the water surrounded her like gel and pulled her into the current.

"Tohru!" Hatsuharu crested the bank, eyes raking the water for a glimpse of a bow, a skirt, anything. He saw a yellow ribbon spinning, twirling, being taken with the water as easily as sand. As he ran towards the free flowing current, he tripped over something and almost ended up in the water. He looked down instinctively, and saw a white bottle, stark against the wet sediment. He picked it up, confused, until he read the label. "Shigure!" He shouted over the loud water. "Are these Tohru's?" He tossed the bottle at him, who caught it easily. When he, too read the label, his face went pale. He sputtered for a bit before nodding, a grim look on his usually easygoing face. Hatsuharu the took the same expression before shrugging off his jacket and jumping into the creek.

The water was cold. She knew that. She could feel herself slipping away. How she was still conscious, she didn't know. Hadn't she taken enough? Her body was no longer her own, being flailed about by the rocks she ran into. She couldn't feel anything except for the numbing cold that surrounded her. She strained to move her eyes, to see anything, and realized she couldn't breathe. She quickly inhaled and panicked when water flooded her nostrils. It tasted coppery and unclean, and she began to choke. She inhaled through her mouth and got the same effect. She felt completely flooded and cold. She thought she saw Hastuharu making his way toward her, but chalked it up to her imagination. She quickly faded out.

Her eyes were closing. Hatsuharu was spearing through the water, closing in quickly on the girl that looked suddenly so small in the wide space. She was twirling like a dancer, except underwater. He pushed the water behind him, getting closer. He reached out and closed his hand over her upper arm. He pulled her close to him, careful to keep their torsos from touching, lest he be turned into a bull. He cradled her In one arm and breached the surface with the other. Her head rolled back, and she wasn't breathing.

He rose out of the water and set her on the bank. Shigure met him with a worried look, and he began taking pulse and listening to her heart. It beat weakly, and Hatsuharu sat up, laced his fingers together, and pushed open palmed over her heart. "Come on, Tohru. Get up." He spoke through gritted teeth. Kyo and Yuki, who were confused as to why Haru hadn't shown up yet, were coming over the hill. They began running when they saw Tohru limp with Hatsuharu leaning over her. Shigure held Kyo back as Hatsuharu worked, performing emergency CPR. Yuki stood back, feigning shock. "How many pills were in the bottle?" Shigure called in an authoritative voice.

Kyo, in his panic, began trying to remember.

"She took two this morning, so eight or nine." He wracked his brain, fear and a racing heart clouding his thought process.

"Which was it, Kyo? Eight or nine? One pill could make the difference!"

"It was nine- no, eight! It had to have been eight, since she took the one that evening."

Hatsuharu leaned over her ear. "Eight pills, Tohru? And throwing yourself into a creek? What happened, girl?"

She, of course, didn't answer him. He breathed into her mouth again, (something Kyo would destroy him for later) and she convulsed, folding in on herself. She coughed up lungfuls of water, and began choking as Hatsuharu sat her up and rubbed her back.

"Call Hatori. She still has eight pills in her." He looked at Kyo, who ran towards the house. Tohru was still coughing in her unconscious state, forehead resting at the crook of his neck. He rubbed her back until she calmed down, and slumped onto him.

She wasn't supposed to still be breathing. Yuki's heart raced. She wasn't supposed to still be alive. That brat just didn't know when to die! He was pacing the hospital bathroom, having something that resembled a panic attack. He would have to do something. He couldn't just walk up and kill her, no. She had constant surveillance. He could run, tear off in a direction far from here. Or he could hope. Hope that whatever hit her in the head in that creek took some memory away. He looked at himself in the mirror and was surprised to see what he looked like. His teeth were bared, his hair a mess. He smoothed it down and took a few deep breaths. After composing himself, he strode confidentially out of the bathroom, eyeing the exit sign on the way out.

Kyo's heart clenched when her eyes opened. He reached out and touched her hand, to which she responded by grabbing his tightly.

"Now, the cold water could have caused shock. She just needs to rest, though she's been recovering quite well. I wouldn't be surprised if you noticed something odd after a little while, a nervous tic perhaps."

"Hey, Tohru." Kyo spoke in a voice not characteristic of him. It was gentler, as if he thought if he spoke too loud she might shatter. Suddenly, her breathing sped up and she reached around searching for something.

Hatsuharu held his hand out with the yellow ribbon, and she clutched it gratefully.

She took a deep breath in and everyone braced for an apology, but when her mouth formed the words, nothing came out. Everyone was stunned when she tried again with the same result. Shigure opened the door and grabbed the doctor's sleeve, yanking him into the room.

"Why can't she speak?" He pointed at Tohru who was trying to form words with tears in her eyes.

Ok, I'm sorry about the cliffhanger. But I'm posting this third chapter to make up for the fact that I have been pretty irregular with these. I can't work to a schedule, but I'll update weekly. How about Sunday? Let me know what day of the week I should try. If you want to send me any works of art, I'm accepting. These few chapters are bringing to light some issues I've seen more and more, like suicide. If you want to, I'm always willing to listen to you guys, so let me know if there's a problem . Love you, and I'm always waiting for feedback. Flames are needed to fuel this CoolMintFire, so let it burn!


	6. Expect the Unexpected

And back by popular demand, the continuation of Tohru's story. I understand there may be a trigger warning in the past three chapters. I apologize, but if you need to talk, I'm here. Again, I don't own Fruits Basket, nor do I wish to for fear that it wouldn't be the same if I were to write it. (Plus, Tohru wouldn't have ended up with Kyo.) so, enjoy!

"That could be a result of anything. Shock, stress, even depression." The doctor kept a level voice.

"But Tohru's not depressed!" Shigure looked about ready to fight the doctor. Hatori, who hadn't spoken until then, grabbed Shigure's arm.

"Shigure, she ingested eight painkillers, set the bottle down, and jumped into a creek. No one else was around at the time. This was a suicide attempt."

Tohru shut her eyes, her worst fear out in the open. They knew she was sad. She spent so much time hiding it, but she was still alive when they found her. She was a burden, and she couldn't even apologize.

Kyo stared at her, and worry darkened his bright eyes. He tried to squeeze her hand, but she pulled away. She wanted only to be left alone, so she could reflect on what she had remembered. The bandage around her head indicated she had been struck with a rock. That would explain the newfound memories.

Yuki jumping her in the woods.

Tearing her arm apart.

Trying to hurt her.

To kill her.

"A suicide attempt? Hatori, it's _Tohru_. Suicide?" They were out in the hallway while Tohru slept in the room.

"She was never able to properly grieve the loss of her mother. She was very good at hiding her depression."

"I spent every day under the same door as her. I would have noticed."

"And I've been coming over more often lately. Doesn't this all make sense? The injuries, the loss of appetite, the overall apologies? I mean, no one that was okay could find themselves doing everything wrong."

"I should know about feelings, I'm a writer. How couldn't I have noticed something was wrong?" He slumped against the wall until he reached the floor, legs pulled up to avoid tripping anyone. Hatori put his hand on his shoulder. "No one could have seen this coming, Shigure."

She was running, but the dream was more complete now. The sounds she heard, the rustling, the flash of silver. It wasn't Kyo she had been running from, it was him. Yuki. He chased her with an agility that he shouldn't have possessed. Leaping from tree to tree he tailed her like a wolf to a rabbit. She saw the branch and tears filled her eyes. She didn't want to trip. She didn't want to see this part. She squeezed her eyes shut, hoping to wake up. Then her ankle twisted and sent her reeling over the edge. She landed on her back and Yuki pounced, immediately beating her down so she couldn't rise. He went to work on her arm, tearing it apart. He grabbed her necklace and broke it from her neck, scraping the delicate skin. He threw it away haphazardly, far in the direction she had come. The pain was so real, so raw that she couldn't speak, could barely breathe, she was completely helpless. She began to scream, until a well aimed punch struck her jugular and she was left gasping for air. He jumped up and she got a lungful of oxygen and blood before the first blow came. Her side was being kicked, every time it happened she was winded and she prayed for what was inevitable. She was going to pass out. But every second she was awake seemed like an hour passing by, like each grain of sand was reluctant to pass through the hourglass. She choked on blood and sobs, struggling to breathe until-

She opened her eyes and was face to face with her attacker. She found she could breathe, so she did what she could do with an inability to form words. She screamed. She screamed and kicked until she saw the white in the background. Until she noticed she wasn't being attacked. That Haru and Hatori and Shigure were looking at her, worried. She turned and tried to run from him, to get away and was met with Kyo's torso. She sagged against him, crying into his shirt. He held onto her and looked at Yuki, who reached for Tohru. She screamed again and tried to get further away. He reached back and stepped away. Everyone around them was shocked, looking at Tohru with faces full of worry. Kyo glared up at Yuki, who seemed just as surprised as the rest were. "Get out." He growled, and Hatori opened the door. Yuki left the room quietly, in a state of shock. Kyo pulled Tohru closer as she cried.

Yuki wasn't allowed in the room anymore, since every time he approached her she would begin screaming. Yuki could offer no explanation for it, and the doctor said it could have been something related to the injuries, and had Yuki been near when this happened?

"He went into her room before she left the house, but they were just sitting there talking. Nothing aggressive, just talking." Shigure had walked by when they had been in her room.

"Then it could have been that. He was the last person she saw, therefore associated with a bad memory. It's very common, and should be better once the shock retreats. It would probably be best if they were separated while she recovers." The doctor wrote a prescription for an antidepressant and a suggestion for a therapist. "This should help with the depression once she recovers. When she takes the pills, make sure she is monitored. Luckily she didn't take enough for an extreme overdose, and getting her stomach pumped did the trick." He handed them the slip of paper. "And don't worry about payment. Anything for a friend." He smiled at the room she was in.

"You know her?" Shigure looked back at the room.

"I knew her mother. And I did a back surgery for her grandfather. All very nice people. That's why I was surprised to hear about the attempt. Her grandfather takes care of her well, doesn't he? I'm sure living with him isn't that bad?"

The men exchanged glances. Clearly he hadn't heard about her residence with the Sohmas. "It could have been anything," Shigure offered. "But thank you for taking care of her."

"Are you her friends? I understand the boys, but... You are a little... Older than her, aren't you?" The doctor looked puzzled. The men looked at each other, panicking.

"I-I'm her maths teacher," He stuttered in his lie. "And this... Is the school physician." He gestured to Hatori.

The doctor believed him. He nodded and laughed. "Of course, of course."

Yuki sat in his room, opting to go home since he couldn't help with Tohru. He again paced the floor, muttering to himself. What could he do? She clearly remembered his attack. He should just run away. He began packing a bag when the door opened.

"Yuki?" Hatsuharu stepped into the room. Kyo followed behind him. "I think it's about time we had a chat."


End file.
